Area Planning Director Dan Richard, standing, hands out exhibits during the Kosciusko Area Plan Commission meeting on Oct. 7.

By Maggie Kenworthy
InkFreeNews

WARSAW — Over an hour was spent discussing one vacation request at the Kosciusko Area Plan Commission meeting held Wednesday, Oct. 7.

Cathy Blaho and Angela Evans petitioned to vacate what was originally a 40-foot easement known as Park Avenue, located off of Kalorama Road, Leesburg. The request was to vacate the original 40-foot easement but leave a 5-foot access easement.

Attorney Steve Snyder, representing the petitioners, explained that these were old plats from the 1920s and that they simply weren’t accurate. The originally platted 40-foot easement does not exist according to a survey done by John Kimpel and Associates, Warsaw. Instead, the two adjacent residential lots meet at the same point of Kalorama Road, without the 40-foot easement between them.

Tom Hardy, of John Kimpel and Associates, explained that it’s hard to tell why or when the error occurred. “We will probably never know who made the first 40-foot mistake,” he said.

Area Planning Director Dan Richard explained that regardless of who or why the mistake was made, the public should not lose lake access as a result of the mistake.

“Our lakes, our accesses to the lake, make Kosciusko County. That’s what makes us unique and a valuable and rich county for people to come to is our access to the lakes,” Richard said. “Every time we eat away at that, I think we are losing some of the importance and some of the value of Kosciusko County.”

Snyder argued that since the petitioners were willing to grant a 5-foot access easement where surveys show no easement technically exists, that the public is actually gaining access.

“Would you rather have 20-feet (of lake frontage) you can’t get to or 5-feet that you can?” Snyder asked.

Robert Payton, a neighbor who states that he and his family use the easement as access to the lake, was present to oppose the request.

Commissioner Bob Conley suggested that the easement could begin as a 5-foot access easement at Kalarama Road, but widen out to eventually be 10-feet wide where the land meets the lake. This suggestion was approved and the recommendation will go before the Kosciusko County Commissioners at 9:15 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 27.

The commission also heard a continued vacation request by Bucher Family Enterprises. The request was for the vacation of the western portion of lot 54 in the plat of South Shore Green, located off of Tee Trail in Syracuse. 

Donald Bucher explained that the lot was unbuildable and he would like it vacated for tax purposes. Residents of the South Shore Green Homeowner’s Association, represented by Snyder, opposed the request. Arguments were made that the request was in violation of the subdivision’s covenants and a petition was over 30 signatures was presented.

“He knew what it was when he bought it and in the eyes of the residents, he’s endangering the property and the properties around it,” said Lee Harman, chairman of the APC.

With this comment, the APC denied the request.

In other news, the commission:

• Granted approval to a continued preliminary plat approval request made by Blake and Apryl Harris for the replat of lot four in Brannon Estates in Pierceton. A condition of approval was made that a drainage swale would be moved outside of an easement.
• Granted preliminary plat approval to Bev Ganshorn for a four-lot residential development on a 2.34-acre tract of ground. The property is located on EMS B10 Lane, Pierceton, previously known as the Cabins on Kuhn.
• Granted preliminary plat approval to John Klinefelter for a residential development on a 1.22-acre tract of ground. The property is located at 1398 Chapman Lake Drive, Warsaw.
• Continued a vacation request made by Wayne and Virginia Shaffer. The petitioners were requesting to vacate a six-foot access easement located between two lots on South Hill Drive, Silver Lake. The request was continued because the petitioners did not attend the meeting.